1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a rotating electric machine including a bearing for rotationally supporting a rotor, which is housed inside a bearing housing portion of a bracket, such as an AC generator for a vehicle to be mounted in a vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is conventionally known the following rotating electric machine. Specifically, the rotating electric machine includes a bracket and a clearance filling member. A bearing housing portion for housing a rolling bearing therein is integrally formed with the bracket. The clearance filling member is provided between an outer race of the rolling bearing and the bearing housing portion, and is made of a material having a larger thermal expansion coefficient than that of the bracket (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 7-158647 (paragraph).
In the rotating electric machine, a cutout portion is provided to the clearance filling member so as to facilitate elastic deformation. At the same time, a projecting portion is formed on an outer circumference of the clearance filling member. The projecting portion is locked to a concave portion formed on an inner circumferential surface of the bearing housing portion to restrict the rotation of the clearance filling member relative to the bearing housing portion.
In the rotating electric machine having the configuration described above, the cutout portion and the projecting portion are required to be provided to the clearance filling member in order to restrict the rotation of the clearance filling member relative to the bearing housing portion and house the clearance filling member inside the bearing housing portion. Thus, the clearance filling member has a complex configuration. In addition, when the clearance filling member is mounted inside the bearing housing portion, the projecting portion is required to be locked to the concave portion formed on the inner circumferential surface of the bearing housing portion. Thus, there is a problem in that long time is disadvantageously required for alignment between the projecting portion and the concave portion.
Moreover, there is another problem described below. The projecting portion of the clearance filling member may be deformed and displaced inwardly when the projecting portion is locked to the concave portion of the bearing housing portion. There is a fear in that such deformation and displacement of the projecting portion adversely affects the outer race of the bearing housed inside the bearing housing portion through an intermediation of the clearance filling member.